A modern drum and bugle corps is a musical marching ensemble consisting of
brass instruments,
percussion instruments,
synthesizers,
color guard, and choreographic movements. Typically operating as independent
non-profit organizations, drum corps perform in competitions, parades, festivals, and other civic functions. Participants of all ages are represented within the band activity, but the majority are between the ages of 13 and 22 and are members of corps within Drum Corps International or Drum Corps Associates.[1]

History

Drum and bugle corps stems from a rich American and Canadian military history, separate from other marching musical activities. Beginning after
World War I through the 1970s, corps and competitions were often sponsored by the
VFW,
Scout troops, churches, the
Royal Canadian Legion, and the
American Legion. Owing to many of these groups' roots, corps were traditionally militaristic. By the late 1960s, many corps wanted more creative freedom and better financial compensation than was offered by their sponsoring organizations. Some felt the prize-money structures, based on competitive placement, were not fairly compensating all corps for their appearances. Additionally, some felt the current judging rules were stifling musical and theatrical possibilities. At the peak of North American drum corps participation (with perhaps a thousand active corps in the U.S. and nearly as many in Canada), several corps decided to "unionize", as stated by Don Warren (founder of the
Cavaliers). They formed their own organizations, which ultimately led to the formation of
DCA in 1965 and
DCI in 1972. By this time, many corps had already lost their church or community sponsors.

For the corps that remained, longer travel times were necessary to attend the shrinking numbers of contests, further adding to the financial and time demands on the organizations and their individual members. At the same time costs for the increasingly complex field shows mounted and creative and instructional demands rose leading many competitive corps to falter and become inactive. By the late 1990s only a fraction of the corps that existed in the 60s and 70s remained, although several new corps, some of which have become very successful, did start up along the way.

Non-competitive classic-style corps (often and sometimes inaccurately known as "alumni corps") saw a renaissance beginning in the mid-1980s and they continue to organize in the 21st Century; members often remain vigilant about the traditions and virtues of the drum corps activity before the advent of electronic technology, band instruments, dancing and singing.

Freed from the traditional and more-restrictive judging rules of the late 1960s, corps began making innovative changes such as the use of Bb brass instruments (late 1990's early 2000's), wide-ranging tempos, intricate asymmetric drill formations, elaborate guard costumes and props, and the use of stationary orchestral percussion instruments. A common criticism of drum corps is that it has become too similar to
marching band, but although the two activities are very similar they are still clearly distinct. A few corps still utilize the traditional G
Bugle which is very rarely found in DCI marching units. The competitive season for drum corps is in the summer rather than fall, with auditions and initial ensemble rehearsals beginning as early as late October of the previous year. The top-tier competitive corps are often very complex and more professional than the average marching band, as members in full-time touring units have no distractions outside their organization during the season and membership is achieved only through highly competitive auditions.

Musical program

Repertoire

A typical show usually revolves around one genre of music, or sometimes melds separate genres together. Modern corps programs have become increasingly conceptual and programmatic, with overarching show themes rather than loosely related musical selections. Often, especially within classical selections, a single composer's material is featured. Corps have performed virtually every genre of music that can be fit for on-field adaptation, including jazz, new age, classical, and rock music. It is becoming increasingly common to hear corps performing original music, composed specifically for the corps by their musical staff or consultants.

The exclusive use of bell-front
brass instrumentation is a defining musical element of drum corps. Throughout the years, the horns used in drum corps have evolved from true, single-valved
bugles to modern Bb brass instruments. Until 1999, drum and bugle corps hornlines within DCI were required to be pitched in the key of G. That year, the DCI rules congress passed a rule change to allow "brass bell-front valve instruments in any key with the exception of sousaphones and trombones."[3] In World Class, the rule did not go into effect until the 2000 season, while Open Class opted for a two-year
moratorium prior to implementation in 2002;
DCA followed suit in 2004. Hornlines are now most commonly pitched in B♭, with mellophones pitched in F. In 2014, the DCI Board of Directors passed a rule change that changed their definition of a bugle to allow the entire brass family, including trombones and concert French horns.[4]

Front ensemble members perform on
orchestral percussion and
electronic instruments. Due to the size of these instruments, the pit typically remains stationary, positioned directly in front of the field and centered on or around the 50 yard line. A full-size front ensemble features 10–15 members.

Members of the battery perform on
marching percussion instruments, including
snare drums,
tenor drums (also known as "quads", "quints", or "tenors"), tonal
bass drums, and cymbals. A full-size battery features 7–10 snare drummers, 4–5 tenor drummers, 5 bass drummers, and sometimes cymbal players, which tends to be 4-6 players in size.

Visual program and other visual arts

Color guard

In modern drum corps, the color guard has become a crucial part of each group's visual and thematic program. Standard equipment includes flags, mock rifles, and sabres, but other objects like bare poles, hoops, balls, windsocks, and custom-made props are sometimes used to create visual effects that enhance the show.

The primary role of the color guard is to complement the corps' musical program by creating visual interpretations of the music through dancing, prancing and rolling on the ground. The color guard can also enhance the overall drill design by marching in formations that integrate with the rest of the corps. However, the color guard most often performs as an ensemble that frames the rest of the corps or performs within the drill formations of the corps proper. Like all other sections of the corps, the guard often features solo work.

A Blue Stars practice.

While the rest of the corps generally wears the same uniform for several consecutive seasons, the guard members more often wear spandex uniforms that are custom-made for each corps' theme for a particular season.

Drill formations

Drill formations have become very sophisticated in modern corps. Traditional blocks, company fronts, and symmetrical formations — while still utilized occasionally for impact — have largely given way to abstract formations and band members running around, dancing, prancing and occasionally playing stabs[clarification needed]. Drill writing is an art form unto itself, and is very carefully crafted to keep instrumental sections together, to put featured members at the center of attention and visually reinforce the dancing and prancing to create the most interesting and innovative shapes and movements possible.

Marching technique

As visual programs have increased in complexity, corps have developed and formalized various movement techniques, the goal of each being the achievement of fluid, consistent movements that allow for precise musical technique at all tempos, step sizes, and directions. Given that instrument-wielding members most often face toward the audience (for maximum sound projection), marching technique must not affect the rigidity of members' upper torsos. Horn players may twist their lower bodies in their direction of movement, but members of the battery, due to the nature of their equipment, must keep their entire bodies facing forward at all times. This has led to the invention of the "crab walk" or oblique, where the legs cross over one another to facilitate sideways motion; the technique is used mostly by battery, but in rare instances by the hornline. Being visually oriented, guard members are not as bound to facing the front sideline, and may face any direction at any time as dictated by choreography.

The most common backward marching technique requires balancing on one's platform (visually seen as the 'toes' and keeping the heels off the ground), which is especially effective at faster tempos. The reverse the heel–toe roll step, allowing for heel–ground contact is another technique used, most often at slower tempos.
As an alternative, there are three major groups which utilize a bent leg technique (Santa Clara Vanguard, Madison Scouts, and Pacific Crest), in which the feet come off of the ground and move in a bicycle type motion.

Marching technique programs have largely been inspired by
dance technique. Terminology from
ballet is used to describe foot placement and positioning, and members of the color guard and hornline often jazz run in order to maintain upper body stability when marching at fast tempos with large step sizes. In addition, choreography has permeated all sections of the contemporary drum corps.

Season

While performances and competitions only occur during the summer, preparation for the next season starts as soon as the last one ends. Corps activity of some sort goes on year-round. Months in advance of next season's first camp, corps begin assembling their staffs, choosing their musical repertoires, writing drill, etc.

Camps

For junior (DCI) corps, the season is a very intense process. Most corps begin having camps on or around
Thanksgiving Day weekend and continue having monthly weekend camps throughout the winter. Potential members travel far and wide—literally from around the world—to attend the camps of their favorite corps. Membership in the top corps are highly competitive and are generally determined during the first few camps. By spring, the members have been chosen and camps are held more frequently as the beginning of the summer touring season approaches. Most junior corps require their non-local members to secure temporary housing (often with local members or a vacant dormitory) near the corps' rehearsals facilities around
Memorial Day weekend. For most of May and into June (as college and high school classes end), full-day rehearsals are held virtually every day so members can finish learning the music and marching drill of the show. This pre-season "spring training" (also commonly referred to as "everydays" or "alldays") is usually 3–4 weeks long. It is not uncommon for members to rehearse 10–14 hours a day, 6–7 days a week throughout the entire pre-season. In mid to late June, corps leave to begin their summer tours.

A Blue Stars practice.

For All-Age (formerly Senior) corps the process is not quite as grueling. Since most members have lives outside of drum corps, senior corps rehearse on weekends and occasionally on weekday evenings. Rather than extensive tours, senior corps usually take weekend trips to perform in shows, and make longer trips only to regional championships and finals. Many smaller DCI corps and foreign corps have similar itineraries. Non-competitive corps, such as classic-style corps, alumni corps, or newly aspiring corps might not have a defined season at all. They practice and perform as they deem necessary or possible. Occasionally such corps make exhibition appearances at DCI or DCA shows.

Tour and competition

A
coach, like that of
Santa Clara Vanguard, is used to transport members while on tour. Most corps often rent a public charter bus for their traveling needs.

Semi-trailers, such as this one from
Carolina Crown, are used variously as equipment trucks and mobile kitchens for DCI corps. DCA corps have no realistic need for such equipment and usually make use of smaller trucks such as former
U-Hauls or other moving van type vehicles that do not require a special operator license.

Members of the
Bluecoats eat from their food truck before a performance.

While on tour, junior corps travel mainly at night after leaving the performance venue. Members sleep on the buses and in sleeping bags on gym floors when the next housing destination is reached. Housing for the entire tour is secured in advance through local schools, churches, or other community facilities. Corps practice their shows for as long as possible each day before getting ready to leave for that night's competition, if scheduled. Not every day is a performance day; many days on tour are spent simply traveling to a distant location or entirely on the practice field.

A full-sized, adequately funded junior corps will have a fleet of vehicles, including three or more coach buses for members and staff, a truck or van to carry souvenirs that are sold at shows, and two semi trucks, one for show equipment and one that serves as a kitchen on wheels. Most meals for all members and staff are provided by the cook truck, but occasionally corps have scheduled free days where there are no rehearsals or performances and the members are free to see some local sights and procure their own meals.

Competitions are not the only performances that corps partake in while on tour. Most corps also participate in parades and standstill performances throughout the summer to gain further public exposure and to supplement their budget with performance fees. On the
Fourth of July weekend, corps often locate themselves in large metro areas so they can participate in more than one parade.

Competitions are usually held at college or high school football stadiums or similar venues, and are scored by circuit-approved judges. Most circuits follow the three-caption system of General Effect (GE), Visual, and Music, with GE carrying the most weight. This is the scoring system currently used by DCI (others are similar):

The timing and organization of contests varies significantly from circuit to circuit. Only large DCI corps typically have the funding and time commitment from members to participate in DCI's touring circuit, where corps spend the majority of the summer traveling around the continent performing at different local and regional contests. In other circuits, and for smaller DCI corps, competitions are usually scheduled to allow corps to travel, perform, and return home within a weekend. For this reason, and to boost audience attendance, large competitions are more frequently scheduled on weekends.

A typical regular-season contest consists of fewer than 10 corps, with corps from one or more classes competing together but scored separately. In North America, DCI and DCA corps occasionally perform at the same shows. DCI also schedules larger contests interspersed throughout the latter half of its season. These are restricted to corps in specific classes and feature many (if not all) of the corps within each class. European circuits, such as DCUK, operate on a "minimum performance and lot" system: appearance at the first two shows of the year is determined by lot, and then the corps must appear in a minimum number of shows before the circuit's championships. In such a system, the championships are often the only time all corps in a class compete together.

Some circuits also organize optional individual and ensemble (I&E) competitions for individuals or groups from corps to showcase members' skills outside the field performance environment. These are usually held only once or twice per season at championships or a major regional contest. Members practice their routine(s) in their scant free time throughout the season.

Corps organization

Most corps are operated as or by dedicated non-profit organizations; very few are associated with schools or for-profit entities. Some corps are even parts of larger non-profit performance arts organizations, which might also include theater groups,
winter guards,
winter drumlines, and other various musical or visual activities. In Europe, many are also registered charities, assisting with their fundraising aims.

Staff

Despite their non-profit status, a well-run corps is just like a well-run business. It requires many people to handle fiscal and operational responsibilities. There are four levels of staff operating a drum corps: Executive Management, Executive Staff, Instructional, and Volunteer. Each plays an essential role in creating a well-run corps.

The executive management consists of the Board of Directors and the Executive Director. Often the board are unpaid volunteers. This group is almost always long-standing within successful corps. They create the long-term vision and strategy for the organization, handling the financial, operational, and organizational issues to keep the corps running. The board of directors may be composed of alumni and other closely affiliated people. They hire the Executive (operational) Director who is responsible for hiring the executive staff, the instructional staff, and recruiting volunteers.

The executive staff usually includes the operational office staff, the program director(s) and tour director(s) who run the day-to-day operational needs of the organization.

The instructional staff puts the show on the field. They create the concept of the show, choose and arrange the music, write the drill, and instruct the members on how to play, march, execute, and exude the image of the corps on the field. The staff consists of brass, percussion, guard, and visual (marching) instructors who are most often alumni of the corps or other corps. A well-funded World Class corps usually has 15-20 full-time instructors. Just as members, they attend winter camps and travel with the corps all summer long.

Volunteers are the lifeblood of any corps. Parents, alumni, friends, and fans make the corps work on a day-to-day basis—driving buses and trucks, caring for the corps' uniforms, cooking meals for the corps and staff, and countless other peripheral duties. Corps on touring circuits particularly rely on volunteers due to the extra necessities which come with the tour: cooking and cleaning, providing mechanical maintenance, health and medical needs—all of which are essential.